Elements of downtown Park Station project might need to be re-evaluated

Depending on who you ask, a La Mesa mixed-use development project, slated to occupy up to 6.5 acres in a prime downtown location, is either the best or worst thing to happen to the city since the revitalization of its quaint commercial strip on La Mesa Boulevard. The debate about this project, named Park Station at the Crossroads of La Mesa, or Park Station for short, puts La Mesa at a crossroads in more than name: some want the revitalization to continue with a bold new development, others say the project will compromise the “village” feel.

Urban Housing Partners, the development firm working with Joseph Kitzman, whose family owns much of the development land, said the potential height, housing stock and layout are all up for re-evaluation.

Developers may have to revisit the project’s boundary and potential housing stock, since part of its footprint, a strip destined to be a park, is partially owned by the city. La Mesa Today first published that the land’s title poses an obstacle. Another snag may be the American Legion, whose building is inside the project’s boundaries.

“The Legion building has been here for 65 years. It has no intention of moving,” said manager Lenny Guccione.

Sherm Harmer, president of Urban Housing Partners, said “the height issue is being evaluated,” as is the use for what is now city land. Harmer added the development is respectful of veterans and will provide options that include staying or moving. The public can share its feedback when the draft environmental impact report is released in the coming months.

Critics say the proposal would impact traffic, set a bad zoning precedent and alter the city’s relatively flat skyline with an obtrusive 18-story high-rise. That’s about 14 more stories than the current height limit.

“I kind of like the old charm of La Mesa,” said Jessica Montenegro, 26, who recently moved to La Mesa and was heading to lunch at a downtown cafe. “I think it should stay the same. I don’t think they should add an 18-story building.”

La Mesa resident Don Wood, said the problems reach beyond height or traffic. “You can’t go from a small town to downtown San Diego in one jump,” Wood said. “La Mesa wants to grow organically.”

He said the height ordinance was created for a reason and that it should be raised in increments, without exceptions for private interests. Wood said he fears the developers do not have the public’s interest at heart: A scaled-back project “will be profitable — just not profitable enough for them.”

The project would replace buildings and land near the La Mesa Boulevard trolley station with a park, a hotel or residential tower with hundreds of apartments, and commercial and office space. It would stretch between University Avenue, El Cajon Boulevard, Baltimore Drive and Spring Street, providing pedestrian access to the trolley station, bus stops and shops.

Last year, the project received an endorsement from MOVE Alliance, a coalition of nonprofit groups that supports biking, walking and public transit over cars. Elyse Lowe, executive director of Move San Diego, part of the alliance, said Park Station will do wonders for downtown La Mesa.

“This is a great project, a quarter mile form a very active transit location,” she said. “It could offer people a variety of services without having to get on the freeway or even drive.” As for concerns about a potentially permanent traffic jam? “If people are concerned with vehicular impacts, eliminate the parking lots and have people choose to live there without a car.”

The Kitzman family has owned that land for decades. They announced their plan for Park Station in 2009.